Ashes
by Rigbutter96
Summary: All things, sins included, come home to roost. Any Heroic Spirit would say the same. But the magus don't understand this. They feel they're invincible. They stole me from my home. They twisted me into this. They made me this monster. Now they need me to save them from this calamity.
1. Prologue

**AN: This is my, hopeful, return to writing on this site. Having read over my old stories I can safely conclude that I was, and might still be, a bad writer. I'd like to think that in the time that I was away from writing that I could have, if nothing else, refined my skills, so here we go!**

**A lot of this will be inspired by the series of Fate stories that the esteemed, ****renowned, and all around amazing author NeonZangetsu has published these last few months, so if it seems like they're sort of...copying them, I deeply apologize. It's just he's done an excellent job of creating an in universe conflict that spans and includes so many different stories that I'm actually quite astonished he even thought it up.**

**In regards to the actual writing of this, it was difficult to choose if Naruto would be a Servant or a Master, or even if he'd be more than just an ****observer, but I feel like this turned out fairly well, despite the relative shortness of length.**

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(Prologue- Setting the Stage)

Zelretch calmly sipped his tea as his companion read over the file he had handed him, fairly confident that he would accept. Even coming to speak to him had been a major gamble on his part, knowing that if Clock Tower learned of his existence, and their friendship, they'd bother him even more than they do now. And Zelretch would do his best to keep them off his back, Naruto Uzumaki earned that much at least.

As for Naruto, his reading of the file had started to make his brow furrow in frustration, whether at the situation or the people involved a complete mystery to anyone but him.

Finally, Naruto broke the silence, "From what I've been reading, they don't need me. This...whatshername seems like she could handle it. So it begs the question then," Zelretch looked up to stare into the deep, cobalt blue eyes of his companion, holding the gaze as stoically as he could, "Of why I should care."

Nodding, because he'd been expecting that, Zelretch had his reply ready, "You're right. In countless Worlds Chaldea managed to defeat all of the Grand Orders well enough, they don't really need you. But, I have it on good authority that a certain..._calamity_ that you have experience in dealing with is now in their future. Short of manipulating some things to truly bring back a Heroic Spirit, not a Servant, they won't have the power or knowledge on how to endure, let alone defeat, it. But you," and here Zelretch gestured to his companion from across the table, "do in spades. Ever since you achieved this relative form of immortality, you've spent hundreds if not thousands of years combating this calamity."

"Be that as it may," Naruto replied, his eyes never losing the hard, callousness that had over taken them, "the goings on of magus do not interest me. The last time I had anything to do with the Moonlit World, they put a sealing designation on me, and actively hunted down and murdered any descendants I may have had in this modern era."

"It's not just magus at Chaldea, it's Humanity, in and of itself, that are trying to save the sum of human history. Your distaste of magus shouldn't get in your way of saving all of humanity. Besides," Zelretch said, "it's what SHE would have wanted as well. Despite the way things turned out for you two, SHE still cared deeply for all of humanity. Please, in HER name, consider it."

Was it a low blow to bring up his companion's dead lover? Yes. Did it make him nauseous to do so? Yes. Was it necessary? Yes. The coming calamity was something that every Chaldea, even the ones who had managed to complete the Grand Orders AND the Lostbelts, were not in any kind of shape to stop or even postpone. It was an overwhelming enemy that made the likes of the Thirteen Beasts seem insignificant in comparison, a threat so large that entire universes had shifted with its oncoming.

Naruto sighed deeply, staring down at his own cup of tea in thought. He truly despised magus in all of their arrogant, self aggrandizing nature. Magus had torn a way into his old home. Magus had taken him without a word. Magus had tortured him, ripped apart the very fabric of his soul almost, to find answers to questions they didn't even know.

Magus were the ones who had torn apart his mind, stuffing summoned Servants into his skull until he could barely tell the difference between himself and any of them.

But could he really blame all of humanity? No. Zelretch was right about that, if nothing else. SHE would have been insistent that he at least offer advice and guidance to Chaldea with his wealth of experience, especially if the calamity was what he thought it was.

SHE definitely would have asked him to intervene. Sighing heavily whilst downing his tea, Naruto muttered, "One or one billion, they're all lives, I suppose." Louder so Zelretch could hear him, he said, "Fine, I'll help. But you have to be the one to tell them I'm coming. I need some time to prepare."

Zelretch only grinned at that, already he could see the panic in Clock Tower as 'The Man in Black' made his reintroduction to sociaty. "Do you want to come with me to Clock Tower? Seeing you might just stop the hearts of some of the old fogies there."

Shaking his head, Naruto stood and stretched, Zelretch copying him and heading for the door, as he replied, "No. Just give them a heads up that in about a week the biggest skeleton in their closet is about to come tumbling out," His eyes darkened, gaining a dangerous look to them that reminded Zelretch that despite his age and experience, Naruto Uzumaki was still one of the few people who truly scared him, "and this skeleton isn't gonna show any mercy this time."

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**AN: Very short, yes, but for a prologue, as clumsy and blunt as it might be, it should work to set the stage for what's to come. I've already made a plot outline of where, and how it's going to get there, this story will be taking, and this calamity is massive. This chapter is supposed to act as an introduction to the general state of things, how they might play out, and to tease about the future.**

**If it isn't well ****received, that's ok. I can deal with it. I just want this story to be something a bit more...well written, even if the chapters are relatively short and to the point. I might even try out another type of story I've wanted to see for a while now, who knows?**

**The schedule for updates, if work doesn't get in the way, should be hopefully a five thousand word chapter every other Sunday, so hopefully I can force myself to put word to paper.**

**As for pairings, well, it's maxed at five, and I have four selected: Semiramis, Artoria Lancer Alter, Kiara Sessyoin, and Okita Alter. As for the fourth opening, well, I have some in mind, but suggestions would be great.**


	2. Chapter 1

**AN: Okay, first actual chapter. A bit excited. Hooray! Hopefully this chapter makes things less cringe and pushes the story forward. It may not be as long as five thousand words, but still any kind of update is a good thing. Hopefully this sudden inspiration to write keeps going. I've actually been happy to be back into writing. Even though there aren't an absolute boatload of reviews, the fact that something I wrote has been recognized by people is something that touches me deeply. Even flames can be appreciated, as terrible as they may be, as the recognition that someone, despite their absolute hate for my work, actually read it, the fools.**

(Chapter 1- Chaldea)

Olgamarie Animusphere, or Olga if you would, did not want to be here, standing in the frigid cold, waiting for a 'representative of concerned parties' to arrive. She did not want to be in charge. She did not want for things to have gone so far downhill the last month.

It had only been the purest of coincidences that had saved her life when the bombs went off in Chaldea, and it had taken everything she was capable of to not break down in front of everyone in the weeks after. It had only been thanks to Ritsuka 'call me Gudako' Fujimura that she hadn't gone insane from anxiety or panic. While the girl wasn't the best candidate, she did resolve the first Singularity well enough, and she did have a certain way with the few Servants summoned since then.

But she wasn't a Magus of any genuine skill or ability. She was just some random person who had seen an advertisement and signed up, completely ignorant of what Chaldea was even founded for, or what they were hoping to combat. If there was one thing, and only this one thing, that Olga could truly respect was Gudako's determination, to not breakdown in despair at the knowledge that everything, all human achievement, rested on her shoulders.

She sighed drearily as the helicopter appeared on the horizon, steeling herself for the coming conversation, and determined herself to not crumble to any demands that the Association were bound to make. Watching with a sudden detachment, she observed as Kishur Zelretch Schweinorg stepped out of the rotary vehicle, a scowl slowly but surely forming on her face.

Zelretch himself smiled as he approached Olga, amusement dancing in his eyes as he got closer and closer to the young head of the security organization. He had done some preliminary research into the various who's who of this rendition of Chaldea, being somewhat surprised that Olga had survived the bombings that Lev Lainur had planted throughout Chaldea. It didn't really make much of a difference to him one way or another, but it was certainly going to make the conversation a lot more interesting, and entertaining, for him.

Olga greeted the ancient magus with a small scowl and forced politeness, "Greetings, Wizard Marshal. As you may know, I am Olgamarie Animusphere, Director of Chaldea Security Organization. To what do we owe the...pleasure...of your company?"

"Greetings to you as well, Olgamarie. May I call you Olga?" At her stiff, and reluctant, nod, Zelretch continued, "I've come here with a specific task, by the order of the old fuddy duddy Lorelai Bathomeloi."

Olga scowled even further at the mention of Clocktower's head, coming to the conclusion that Zelretch had been sent to observe them as a form of 'insurance' by the Association, "I see. So is it safe to assume you, yourself, are the representative sent to act as the observer and 'advisor' that I've been told was to arrive today?"

If anything, the infuriating grin on the old vampire's face grew just a tad larger, "As unfortunate as it may be, I am not, in fact, the individual who will be observing Chaldea. I did, however, manage to convince the higher ups of Clocktower to authorize me to select a more...neutral...third party to perform those duties."

Confusion, relief, and suspicion warred with irritation as Olga heard and processed that, before settling on confusion. Taking a breath, she proceeded to ask, "And just where, precisely, is this...representative?"

"If what he told me was correct, and knowing him it is, then he's already inside Chaldea and touring the facility."

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Ritsuka 'call me Gudako' Fujimura felt that the entire world was just five seconds away from complete and total annihilation as she stared at the vending machine that just ate the last of her weekly stipend.

And, considering all of the things she had experienced over the last few weeks, what with almost dying in Chaldea, Rayshifting to a hellish landscape of her old home town of Fuyuki City, to almost dying because of corrupted Servants, to realizing that she, Mash, and her very few Servents were all that stood between humanity and complete annihilation, she felt that the added stress of a money eating machine may have finally been the starw that broke the back of her poor, frayed, and stressed nerves.

"Stupid machine!" She growled, giving a swift kick to the large mechanical device, and scowling even more as the machine didn't even have the grace to moan in pain. Sighing deeply, she leaned against a wall, sliding to sit beside the machine and pull her knees to her chest, suddenly so exhausted she could barely move.

The last few weeks had been really stressful for her. Maybe an understatement, but true nonetheless.

She was constantly being praised by everyone, staff and Servant alike, for being brave enough to walk into the hell that the Grand Orders were supposed to be, but she wasn't brave. The only reason, the absolutely only reason, she had decided to stick around and see this through, was because she was the ONLY one who could.

All the other Masters, the other forty-seven, were in comas, and no one else had the capacity to properly summon for the Heroic Spirits. No one else was able to do anything, to face the Singularities and fight tooth and nail to complete them.

Mash was encouraging to her, she really was, but, to her at least, the knowledge that their friendship was based solely on Gudako's ability to resolve the Grand Order's made her hesitant to truly dedicate herself to a friendship with the lavender haired girl, so she couldn't turn to her to vent her fears and frustrations.

Romani Archaman was a kind hearted, good natured man, and despite the amazingly calm, collected way he supported her, she couldn't get past this feeling that the tangerine haired man was hiding something from her and the others, something that could help them in the long run, causing her to categorize the man in the same vein as Mash.

The less said about Director Olga and her's relationship, the better.

Somedays, it took everything she had just to get out of her bed and operate through the day, whether they were trying to summon more of the four and five star Servants, or gathering the necessary materials to grow their Spirit Origin in preparation for the hell that was awaiting them.

The orange haired young woman stirred from her position against the wall at the sound of steady footsteps reached her ears, the sound getting closer and closer until they stopped just to the side of her. Raising her head from the tops of her knees slightly, she looked up at the sudden arrival.

He was a handsome man, easily a nine out of ten in pure looks and coupled with tall height, with blonde hair that seemed to resemble only the purest form of gold possible. His face was stern, with a serious line to his jaw that gave him the look of someone who had seen terrible, horrible things and walked away a better man. Across either cheek were three, thin lines, almost like whiskers, while all along the left side, crawling into what was supposed to be his left eye were deep, cruel looking burn scars. His right eye was a pure, oceanic blue while his left, the scarred half, was a deep, evil, angry, hate filled red that seemed to almost glare at everything he looked at.

His garb only acted to accentuate his form and, dare she say dangerous, look even more. His white buttoned up shirt, the long sleeves rolled up to just below his elbows accented the dark, red pin-stripped vest that stretched over his broad torso, black gloves covering his hands. The scars seemed to extend to his left side even further, as a patch work of scarred flesh covered his left forearm and extended further up his arm. Black slacks covered his legs, shirt tucked in, with a black belt holding up them up alongside black suspenders. Black leather dress shoes finished up the look, shined to absolute perfection.

He looked at her for a moment, as if he was judging wether she was worth the effort of speaking to or not, before giving a small sigh and turning to the vending machine. Narrowing his eyes, the blonde man seemed to agonize over what choice he had to make from the machine that had STOLEN her money. He seemed to make a choice as he grabbed some money from his wallet, sliding it into the machine before selecting his snack. After a moment, he frowned when his snack didn't appear. Raising his fist, he 'lightly' bashed the machine, the lights flickering as the device bounced off of the metallic walls Chaldea was made of, before the sound of two snacks falling into the output rang out.

He grabbed his, crouching without a single comment, before standing and offering her the other snack.

When he spoke, his voice was simultaneously soft, but strong, deep but comforting, as if someone had turned a small heater on in the middle of winter, with just enough warmth to make you carve more, "I believe that this might be yours."

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**AN: Not necessarily five thousand words, but it should do. I've decided to write as much or as little as I feel for each chapter, and if some of them turn into a twenty thousand word monster, great, if not, great. Like I said last chapter, this story is more for me to get 'back in the saddle' and try and work on writing dialogue. More refinement, I suppose.**

**As for the chapter: the thing I love most about Type Moon and the related material is the (relatively) well thought out power systems and balances that is incorporated in it, as well as how, how to phrase it, flawed the characters are on an inherent level. The protagonist, the hero, can be just as bad or capable of bad things as the antagonist. A good example being Kiritsugu Emiya, who while not my favorite character is still a well thought and fleshed out one, with flaws and weaknesses of character abound. It constantly challenges the reader to make the determination themselves over who to support, like in Fate/Apocrypha where Amakusa Shirou wanted to bring about a world of peace, even at the cost of humanity. They created an antagonist who, while not necessarily a villain, was doing everything for the 'Greater Good.' It just fascinates me so much.**

**The harem has been changed, though. Instead of Okita Alter, I've decided to put in Tomoe Gozen. That is, so far, the only change, so I still appreciate suggestions for it. Just tell me the person and the reasoning (beyond 'she's got big boobies') and I'll take it into consideration.**

**I don't know when, precisely, I'll update, but if I can do it, I'll try to post either the coming Sunday, or the one after.**

**Have a pleasant Sunday, and a pleasant week.**


	3. Chapter 2

**AN: This chapter was, surprising to me, fairly easy to write. I wanted to develop more of Naruto's general personality and interactions with others, while progressing the plot some, but instead chose to make what I want to call an Interlude, sort of like my current favorite author and inspiration for this story, NeonZangetsu, who actually left a review for the first chapter! But it ultimately became a chapter from the perspective of the 'Calamity' itself.**

** After reviewing some of the actual, hand written notes about this story I made an adjustment or two that would mesh it in a lot more, more specifically just what the 'Calamity' that has been alluded to was. ****I made some minor adjustments to the final big bad, of which I've already made a profile for, and whom was inspired by some recent stories I've read, both on and off ****fan fan-fiction.**

**There isn't really much to say about this chapter, other than I hope it is as well received as the others, and to the inevitable flamers, thank you so much for the feedback, no matter how negative it may be. There is no such thing as a perfect story, author, or chapter therein, so having any and all feedback about a story and the direction it's going is helpful.**

(Chapter 2- Calamity)

It slumbered.

Dreams, nightmares, fantastical scenes and horrid terrors filled it, dancing, flashing across it's mind.

A world, small, weak, but persistent. Enduring. A horde of fragile creatures, fleshy pink things, staring without comprehension at their world, slowly discovering the magnitude of their_ insignificance_.

The dream stirred once more. A new scene plays out. The creatures stood more sure of themselves. Braver. More curious. Stone and stick, rock and flint, they slowly grew more sure of themselves.

That they were _special._ Ignorant of the nature of the beings who held dominion over them.

The dream grew hazy, clearing within an instant. A great figure, proud and great and fearsome. This one was different. Somehow _greater_ than the other creatures they lorded over. As if they were _better_. As if all things were already their's.

A simple creature, not special in any way, chosen so cruelly, tortured and maimed and despised, declared to hold All the Evils of the World. As though the creatures understood _evil_.

Again, the scene changed. Further now. A creature, beauty beyond any other before or after, watching and careful, like a serpent, as manipulation after manipulation fell into place. Haughty and proud, shrouding grief and fear and _pain _like the other things around them.

Once more. This figure was grand. All the world at their feet, kneeling, the other creatures bent and broken to submission, before them a great sea, beyond which impossibility awaited. Watching and waiting, as if by declaring it so, everything would eventually kneel.

Scene after scene played out, each one bringing more and more knowledge and experience as the last. The sum of all things.

A creature with gold hair, smiling and singing as her world _burned_. Another, with equally gold hair, stood proud before a grand city, even as darkness crept over it. A swordsman, a lifetime of practice and experience, yet still ever more to learn. Again and again and again. These strange creatures who bent so easy, yet never broke.

And it _hated_ them. Hated the creatures who mocked life, treated it as a toy, to be tossed about and disregarded, as though they themselves understood _life_.

It hated the creature who died on his feet, only kept that way by tying themselves to a tree. It hated the creature who prayed to a higher power, faith blindly leading them to a horrid end. It hated the creatures, who so loved each other, but so easily manipulated by their 'friends'. It hated the creature who stood in defiance of the natural order.

But most of all, of all the creatures it had witnessed and watched and learned from, it hated-_hated-**hated-**_**HATED**\- the creature who watched it all with it. Who saw the failings and glories, the brightest kindness and darkest cruelty, and still found forgiveness and love and kindness at every turn. As though, even when they faltered they could still stand back up. As if it could understand kindness-where it was just as cruel-love-where it was just as hateful-forgiveness-as it clung to it's hate like a lifeline- the arrogant creature wearing it's petty, weakness as a cloak.

It hated that one the most.

So it would wait. Watch. Learn.

And one day, it would annihalate every. Last. One. Of. Them.

It stirred, then, sending ripples across all things, a black dread spreading through all of creation. The primal knowledge that the end was coming.

A single, great eyelid fluttered lazily open, eyes reflecting the infinite perceiving just once outside of dreams the world, and the _humans_ who inhabited it, and found it-them-wanting.

It would see the destruction of these creatures, so alien to itself, it thought sleepily, even as it drifted further and further into the realms of dream, and in their place oblivion, blissful in it's nihilism, a chasm of nothingness.

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**AN: Again, this chapter was more or less a look into the Calamity. I've been agonizing for a while on how to describe what it wants, and even after rewriting it several times I'm still not wholly satisfied with it. And before anyone screams 'Lovecraft' no. It is not a 'Great Old One'. It is not an 'Elder God.' I won't spoil what it is, but hopefully as the story goes on, it will become apparent.**

**On a different note, the suggestions for the members of Naruto's lovers have been coming in nicely. The one I've seen most often is Byrnhilder, and I can work with that. Might be difficult, but I can. And until I actually write it in, it's still up for grabs. But so far, she is in the lead. If anyone has any other suggestions, please, review with your chosen and why.**

**Like always, I don't know when I'll update, so be on the lookout.**

**And as always, have a pleasant day.**


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